Merton Pride pear trees
£40.50Merton Pride pear trees for sale
Choose a size - bare-root
BR11-year bare-root tree,Pyrodwarf rootstock£40.50
Large tree
(3m-5m after 10 years)
Out of stock
BR21-year bare-root tree,Pyrus c. Kirchensaller rootstock£40.50
Very large tree
(4m-7m after 10 years)
Out of stock
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Ask our fruit tree experts on 01759 392007 or fill in our contact form.
Tree specification
Photos of trees as supplied |
Tree sizes and forms
Next deliveries
Order now for delivery from 26th May.
Delivery charges
Delivery for a single tree starts at £9.95, it is calculated based on your postcode.
All about Merton Pride pear trees
Pedigree is often an indicator of quality and Merton Pride has an excellent one - it is related to the well-known English Williams pear, crossed with a Belgian variety of good repute called Glou Morceau. The result is undoubtedly one of the best quality English pears available, notable for its juicy buttery flesh.
Be sure to pick the fruits whilst they are still fairly hard, and then ripen indoors.
Growing and Training
Merton Pride is a triploid variety - which is fairly unusual amongst pears. As with triploid apples, this is reflected in its fairly vigorous growth and above average disease resistance, but it is also unable to pollinate other pears. It needs another pear tree nearby for pollination, Conference is a good choice for this purpose.
Although developed in England and with a part-English ancestry, Merton Pride has both the flavour and growing requirements of the top French pears. It is best grown in the south and east of England, in a warm sunny spot and on good soil - if you can provide these conditions then you should be rewarded with high quality pears.
Merton Pride is quite difficult to propagate in the nursery and is usually only available on the more vigorous rootstocks.
Which pollinators are recommended for Merton Pride pear trees?
Merton Pride is not self-fertile and is also a poor pollinator of other varieties. Ideally you need two other different but compatible varieties planted nearby in order to produce fruit, or one compatible self-fertile variety.
The following varieties are good pollinators for Merton Pride.
If you are not sure about pollination requirements just ask us.
ConferenceConference is a popular and reliable English pear, well-suited to the UK climate.
ConcordeA marriage of Conference and Comice - Concorde is easy to grow, heavy crops, excellent flavour.
Beurre SuperfinA traditional French 19th century pear, widely considered one of the best for flavour.
GorhamA reliable early 20th century American pear, with a sweet creamy flesh.
- More pollinators >
History
Developed in the 1940s at the famous John Innes Institute at Merton, Surrey, England. Merton Pride is a cross between Williams and Glou Morceau.
Merton Pride characteristics
- What level of gardening skill is needed to grow Merton Pride?Average
- Is Merton Pride self-fertile?Not self-fertile
- What flowering group is Merton Pride?4
- Is Merton Pride good for pollinating others?Poor
- How does Merton Pride bear fruit?Spur-bearer
- What climates is Merton Pride suitable for?Temperate climatesWarm climates
- What season do you pick Merton Pride?Mid
- CroppingGood
- How long can you keep Merton Pride in a fridge?1 week
- Food usesEating fresh
- What is the overall disease resistance of Merton Pride?Good
- Where does Merton Pride originate from?United Kingdom
- When was Merton Pride first introduced?1900 - 1949
- What colour is the blossom of Merton Pride?White
You might also like these varieties
ConcordeA marriage of Conference and Comice - Concorde is easy to grow, heavy crops, excellent flavour.
ConferenceConference is a popular and reliable English pear, well-suited to the UK climate.
InvincibleInvincible is a high quality pear which can also cope with difficult conditions.
ObeliskA useful dwarf pear tree for small gardens, it grows with a tidy upright habit and is self-fertile.
British-grown trees
Unlike many garden centres and online retailers, the vast majority of our fruit trees are grown in the UK.
Find out more.
All our trees are certified under the Plant Healthy scheme, supervised by the Plant Health Alliance.
Other stakeholders include Defra and the RHS.
Find out more.
Guaranteed fruit trees
When you buy your fruit tree from Orange Pippin Fruit Trees we guarantee it for the first season in your garden while it gets established. If it doesn't grow successfully, we'll either replace it the following season or offer a refund, subject to some conditions.
Find out more.
More about pear trees
Pears are amongst the most desirable of all orchard fruits, with their characteristic sweet flavours. Most of the varieties we know today arose in the first half of the 19th century, when there was an explosion of interest among amateur and professional growers in raising new varieties, particularly in Belgium, France, and England. The aim was to achieve a buttery soft flesh and exquisite rich flavour.
Unlike apples, pears which are grown for eating fresh - known as dessert pears - can't usually be eaten straight from the tree, and should not be left to ripen on the tree. Instead aim to pick them just before they are ripe, and then place them in a fruit bowl for a few days.
